Stuffing box



Aug. 12 1924.

R. w. ROGERS STUFFING BOX Filed March 6, 1923 IN VEN TYJR.

j ATTORN Patented Aug. 12, 1924.

UNITED STATES BOY W. ROGERS, 0F MIDIAN, KANSAS.

STUFFING- BOX.

Application filed March. 6, 1923. Serial No. 623,246.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROY W. ROGERS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Midian, in the county of Butler and State of Kansas, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Stuifing Boxes, of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to stuffing boxes designed primarily for use inconnection with the packing of the polish rods of pumps in deep welloperations, but it is to be understood that a stufiing box in accordancewith this invention can be employed for any purpose wherein it is foundapplicable, and the invention has for its object not only to improve theconstruction disclosed by Letters Patent 1,400,991, granted December 1,1921, but further to provide in a man ner as hereinafter set forth astuffing box including means to automatically set up a packing action onthe rod to prevent leakage during the operation of the pump, as well asto provide for the convenient insertion, removal or pulling of thepolish rod of the pump when occasion so requires and without detachingthe body portion or body member of the device.

Further objects of the invention are to provide in a manner ashereinafter set forth a stufiing box for the purposes referred to whichis simple in its construction, strong, durable, compact, thoroughlyefficient in its use, having the packing elements thereof shifted andheld in position automatically with respect to the polish rod to preventleakage during the operation of the pump, conveniently installed, andcomparatively inexpensive to manufacture.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists ofthe novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts ashereinafter more specifically described, and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, wherein is shown an embodiment of the invention,but it is to be understood that changes, variations and modificationscan be resorted to which fall within the scope of the claim hereuntoappended.

In the drawings wherein like reference characters denote correspondingparts throughout the several views Figure 1 is an elevation of astufl'ing box in accordance with this invention.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional View thereof.

Figure 3 is a top plan view.

Figure 4 is a section on line 4.4, Figure 1.

Referring to the drawings, a stuffing box in accordance with thisinvention comprises a body member, a clamping element, a series ofpacking elements, a gland element, and a pair of pressure applyingelements. The packing elements are supported in the body member andengaged by the gland element which is automatically shifted through themedium of the pressure applying elements and these latter are connectedwith the gland element and retained in position by the clamping elementwhich is carried by the body member. The body is so set up that thepacking elements can shift lengthwise and they are compressed to snuglyengage the polish rod to prevent leakage.

The body member is hollow from end to end, is constructed from metallicmaterial of substantial thickness, is cylindrical in cross section andincludes a peripherally threaded lower portion 10, an upwardly flaringintermediate portion 11, and an upper portion 12 which is of greaterdiameter than the lower portion 10. The top of the upper portion 12 isoffset and somewhat enlarged to provide at a point removed from the topedge of the upper portion 12 an annular shoulder 13. The flaringintermediate portion 11 provides what may be termed a seat 14 ofinverted frustoconical shape.

Arranged within the body member and positioned against the seat 14, is afollower ring 15, of the same contour as the shape of the seat 14 andwhich is substantially of the same height as the height of the seat 14and wedgingly engages the seat 14 and owing to the manner of setting upthe ring 15 with respect to the seat 14, the ring 15 can shift towardsthe lower portion 10 so that it will always be in snug engagement on theinner face of the body member. The ring 15 is formed with an opening 16,for the passage of the polish rod 17 of the pump, and said ring 15 hasits top formed with a concave recess 18.

The packing elements, which as shown are three in number, although thisnumber can be increased if desired, are interposed between the ring 15and a gland element to be presently referred to, and the said packingelements are indicated at 19, 20 and 21. The packing elements are in theform of perforated disks and constructed of any suitable compressiblematerial preferably leather or rubber. The lower face of the packingelement 19 conforms in curvature to the concave recess 18 so as tosnugly engage therein and the upper face of the packing element 21 is ofconvexed curvature for a purpose to be presently referred to. Both facesof the ring 20 are flat.

The packing elements are of a diameter to snugly engage the inner faceof the body member and are provided with openings for the passage of thepolish rod17, and the diameter of the openings is such as to provide asnug engagement between the walls thereof and the polish rod 17 Thegland element consists of a hollow cylindrical body portion 22 of anouter diameter to snugly engage the inner face of the body member andsaid body portion 22 has its openings of two different diameters, thesmaller indicated at 23 and the larger at 24. The wall of that portionof smaller diameter as indicated at 23, snugly engages with the polishrod 17. The wall of that portion 24, of greater diameter, is spaced fromthe polish rod 17. The gland element has its lower edge formed with aconvex recess 25 into which extends, as well as snugly fits, theconvexed upper face of the packing element 21. The gland element isextended into the u per portion of the body member and is of a ength asto permanently extend upwardly therefrom and the body portion 22, ofsaid gland element, is formed with a pair of oppositely extending andoutwardly disposed flanges 25, 26 which extend at right angles withrespect to the axis of the land element and are arranged in lengt wisealinement with respect to each other. Each of the flanges 25, 26, is ofa length to project beyond the body member and each of said flanges isformed with a transverse groove 27 of a length equal to the width of theflange. The grooves 27 are provided in the upper face of the flanges andat a point between the transverse center of each flange and the innerend thereof. The grooves 27 are adapted to receive the pressure applyingelements, to be presently referred to, and which elements coact with thegland element for the purpose of compressing the packing elements sothat they will snugly engage with the polish rod to prevent leakageduring the operation of the pump, and the action of such pressureapplying elements is automatic as will be hereinafter understood.

The clamping element, which cooperates with the pressure applyingelements for the purpose of connecting them with the body member andalso for the provision to cause the application of the pressure fromsaid elements on the gland element, consists of two complementarysections which are oppositely disposed with respect to each other andeach of which is formed of a semicircular intermediate portion 28 and apair of end portions 29 which are disposed at right angles with respectto the intermediate portion 28. The end portions 29 extend in oppositedirections with respect to each other and are arranged in lengthwisealinement. The intermediate portion 28 is positioned against theperiphery of the body member and against the shoulder 13. When thesections of the clamping element are positioned against the periphery ofthe body member, the end portions 29 of one section opposes the endportions 29 of the other section, but are spaced therefrom to providefor the passage of the pressure applying elements, to be presentlyreferred to. Each end portion 29 is formed with a pair of openings 30,31 and the openings of the end members 29, of one section of theclamping element, are arranged in alinement with respect to the openingsformed in the end portions 29, of the other section of the clampingelement. Extending through the alining openings 30, are headed bolts 32,carrying nuts 33, and said bolts 32, in connection with the nutsprovides means for detachably securing the clamping element to the bodymember, in the manner as shown in Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings.Extending through the alining openings 31, of the end portions 29, arecotter pins 34 which provide means for detachably connecting thepressure applying elements to the clamping element.

The pressure applying elements are detaehably connected with the glandelement and with the coupling element, and two pressure applyingelements are employed, and each of which consists of a substantiallyelongated rod 35 having its lower portion peripherally threaded as at36. The upper end of the rod 35 terminates in an integral angularlydisposed skeleton head formed of a U-shaped body 37 carrying aconnecting bar 38. The opening 39 formed by the skeleton head is of suchsize as to permit of the head being positioned over a flange 25 or 26,so that the connecting bar 38 can seat in a groove 37 whereby a pressureapplying element is connected with the gland element. The skeleton headat the upper end of the rod 35 extends inwardly and at an upwardinclination with respect to the rod 35 and when the two pressureapplying elements are set up with respect to the gland element, theskeleton heads extend in opposite directions with respect to each otheras shown in Figure 2.

Mounted on the rod 35, at the upper portion thereof is a disk 40, andcarried by the threaded portion 36 of the rod 35 is an adjusting nut 41.Mounted on the rod 35 between the disk 40 and nut 41 is a coiledexpansion spring 42, the function of which is to shift the roddownwardly thereby carrying the gland element therewith andautomatically exerting pressure on the packing elements within the bodymember. The nut 41 provides means for adjusting the tension of thespring 42.

When the pressure applying elements are set up, the rods 35 extendupwardly between the end portions 29 of the sections of the clampingelement, and with each rod 35 arranged between a bolt 32 and a cotterpin 34 as clearly shown in Figure 4 of the drawin'gs. When it is desiredto pull the rod 17, the cotter pins 34 are moved, and the pressureapplying element swung outwardly which releases the pressure on thepacking elements and the polish rods 17 can then be removed.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, a stufling box is set up having means for automaticallyapplying pressure to packing elements to prevent leakage during theoperation of the polish rod and further a stufiing box is set up whichenables the convenient removal of the polish rod when occasion sorequires, and although the provided embodiment of the construction is asshown and described, yet changes in the details of construction can behad which will fall within the light of the invention as claimed.

What I claim is:

A stufiing box comprising a hollow body member, a packing means arrangedtherein and supported thereby, a gland extending into said member andhaving its upper end formed with oppositely disposed laterally extendingtransversely grooved flanges, a pair of vertically extending springcontrolled pressure applying elements each formed at its upper end withan inwardly extending skeleton head seated in a groove of and furtheropposing the sides of a flange, and a clamping element carried by saidbody in proximity to its upper end and provided with laterally disposedend portions providing means for detachably connecting said pressureapplying elements with said body and further constituting abutments forthe springs of said pressure applying elements, and said end portionsincluding transversely extending removable means to permit of theswinging outwardly of the pressure applying elements on said flanges torelease the gland to relieve compression on the packing means.

In testimony wherof, I aflix my signature hereto.

ROY W. ROGERS.

